All uphill
Still rolling along
- Location
- Somerset
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Absolutely - built bloody well too; I doubt anything currently available at the entry-level would look / function this well in 40yrs..
Not much to report other than the results of an impulse measuring on the crankset's Q-factor last night.
Measured between outer crank faces gave a value of around 154mm (so about 7mm more than most modern road cranksets) coupled with the wide pedals giving an effective pedal spacing of around 275mm which is about midway between a road crank with skinny pedals and an MTB item with fat pedals. Irritatingly it's offset by about 1.5mm to the DS, but it's no big thing.
Obviously this measurement is somewhat specific to this bike, since with square taper setups the Q-factor is dependent on the BB dims themselves and by association the width of the BB shell in the frame.
In other news I swung by the shops earlier today and saw the spitting image of the Routier parked outside - same frame size and everything; better nick with less corrosion and apparently entirely original spec (including grotty chromed rims and arse-wrecker saddle) aside from some nice tan wall tyres
Seeing a nice example makes me feel a bit bad about how mine's languished in the outside, and will probably be subject to similar treatment in future.. however I have to remind myself that had I not rescued it from the streets it would probably have been turned into Chinese bean tins by now.
FInally I'm tempted to wrap the bars with some more tape, since the existing (original) stuff is tatty, thin and correspondingly uncomfortable. I see Halfords are currently doing Cinelli natural-colured cork stuff for decent money (with the additional incentive of no postage as I can collect) however the counter to that idea is that it requires me to put my hand in my pocket, detracts from the bike's originality and the better it looks the more incentive there is to rob it..
Absolutely - built bloody well too; I doubt anything currently available at the entry-level would look / function this well in 40yrs..
Not much to report other than the results of an impulse measuring on the crankset's Q-factor last night.
Measured between outer crank faces gave a value of around 154mm (so about 7mm more than most modern road cranksets) coupled with the wide pedals giving an effective pedal spacing of around 275mm which is about midway between a road crank with skinny pedals and an MTB item with fat pedals. Irritatingly it's offset by about 1.5mm to the DS, but it's no big thing.
Obviously this measurement is somewhat specific to this bike, since with square taper setups the Q-factor is dependent on the BB dims themselves and by association the width of the BB shell in the frame.
In other news I swung by the shops earlier today and saw the spitting image of the Routier parked outside - same frame size and everything; better nick with less corrosion and apparently entirely original spec (including grotty chromed rims and arse-wrecker saddle) aside from some nice tan wall tyres
View attachment 772813
Seeing a nice example makes me feel a bit bad about how mine's languished in the outside, and will probably be subject to similar treatment in future.. however I have to remind myself that had I not rescued it from the streets it would probably have been turned into Chinese bean tins by now.
FInally I'm tempted to wrap the bars with some more tape, since the existing (original) stuff is tatty, thin and correspondingly uncomfortable. I see Halfords are currently doing Cinelli natural-colured cork stuff for decent money (with the additional incentive of no postage as I can collect) however the counter to that idea is that it requires me to put my hand in my pocket, detracts from the bike's originality and the better it looks the more incentive there is to rob it..
That's a lovely colour. I rebuilt a Raleigh Royal a few years back with the same colour scheme. They are really almost bomb proof bikes.
That looks very nice
I've always coveted the mid-late '80s, high-end Raleigh tourers - love those forks
Considering some of the other colour schemes about at the time I think the Routier got away very lightly, although this is pretty much the only thing it has in common with the proper tourers which I imagine are far nicer to ride.
In the past year the Routier has seen a smattering of use. While still of value as a low-theft-risk hack this is limited to an extent by varous factors; for example a lack of compatability with presentable winter clothing.
Another issue until recently was the bike's inability to carry a lock - a real pain since the only alternative was to stick it in my small cycling rucksack; meaning that had to be carried around once the bike was locked up and in the past unfortunately resulted in damage to the bag
This issues was recently solved courtesy of a gratis pannier bag that came up locally. While the colour won't have been my first choice (and the fixings are a bit sketchy) I'll not be looking this gift horse in the mouth and I really appreciate the additional functionality this has brought - not just in terms of carrying the lock, but also other things I might take an impromptu fancy to whilst out.
The bike did a particularly sterling job on May day - ferrying me into the city at an obscene hour, then around all over the place throughout the day and following night in a manner only it could achieve since I'd never have been comfortable leaving any of my other bikes locked up in these circumstances.
All that said it's not all splendid as the bike's shortcomings seem to be increasingly conspicuous in its use - it seems a bit big for me with the standover height being particularly "uncompromising", while the bar ergonomics aren't ideal, gearing very limited and clunky, and ride harsh.
It's interesting to consider the less offensive characteristics that separate the Routier from my other, more modern gear and try to attribute these behavioural traits to facets of the bike that are objectively different - it's short 165mm cranks, high bottom bracket, narrow bars, shortish stem...
I've analysed images in photoshop to try to quantify other areas of the bike geometry as I can't find any published data. Head tube angle appears to be around 72.5 degrees (perhaps a little slacker than a typical modern road bike, more upright than you'll find on a tourer or gravel bike) and fork offset around 41mm for a trail of about 61mm which is close to both my Croix de Fer and Fuji touring.
Unfortunately once subject to all of Photoshop's straight lines it does appear that the fork may be bent backward somewhat; which will have increased trail. This may (in conjunction with other factors) explain why of all my bikes the Routier's front wheel shows by far the strongest erge to self-centre; it's desire to go in a straight line being particularly apparant when being pushed along by the saddle.
Given all the bike's perculiarities it is sometimes tempting to consider replacements, although it's served me well and has definitely generated significant sentimental value considering how it came to me, its shifting roles as my life has changed and the amount of time I've put into it.
Anyway, a few assorted pictures in celebration of its more recent exploits..
I nearly forgot - passage on shared paths has been improved immeasurably thanks to a "new" bell - gifted by a friend as the only bit worth saving from her basket case of a hybrid; continuing the frugal improvement of a bike that after five years and maybe 1500 miles owes me all of about sixty quid
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